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Endangered North Atlantic right whale entangled in fishing gear off Outer Banks, expected to die

Writer's picture: Corinne SaundersCorinne Saunders

A whale is wrapped in fishing gear.

An aerial survey team found this North Atlantic right whale entangled in fishing gear off the coast of the Outer Banks of North Carolina on Dec. 16, 2024, according to a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) press release. Potentially identifying marks on the gear were blurred to protect the privacy of individuals, and NOAA Fisheries is working with network partners and fellow agencies to determine the origin of the gear, the release said. (Photo courtesy NOAA, by Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute, taken under NOAA Fisheries Permit No. 26919. The survey was conducted by Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute with funding from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.)


By Corinne Saunders


An aerial survey team documented an endangered juvenile North Atlantic right whale entangled in fishing gear about 60 miles off the coast of the Outer Banks of North Carolina on Monday, Dec. 16, 2024.

 

The entanglement is considered serious, and the three-year-old male whale is not expected to survive, according to a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) press release.

 

An aerial survey team from the Florida-based Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute documented the entanglement.

 

Entanglement response teams are on alert, but “current weather conditions in the area are not safe for mounting an immediate response,” the Friday, Dec. 20, NOAA Fisheries press release said.

 

The entangled whale was identified as whale No. 5132, a juvenile male born in 2021, and he was last seen gear-free in October 2024 in the Bay of Fundy, according to the release.

 

The whale “has several lines crossing over and wrapping his head and mouth. Two buoys are attached to the line. There is also a single line trailing from the whale, which extends approximately 100 feet behind the flukes,” the release said.

 

“After reviewing the entanglement, NOAA Fisheries biologists have made a preliminary determination that it meets the Unusual Mortality Event criteria as a ‘serious injury’ case,” the release continued. “This designation means that right whale #5132 is likely to die as a result of the entanglement.”

 

The “Unusual Mortality Event” was declared for North Atlantic right whales in 2017. It includes 151 individuals, of which, 41 are dead, 39 are seriously injured and 71 are “sublethally injured or ill,” according to the NOAA website. The primary causes of the event are fishing gear entanglements and vessel strikes in both U.S. and Canadian waters.


NOAA plans to monitor the whale, working with authorized responders and trained experts, and “further document the entanglement and determine if entanglement responses are possible if the whale is resighted,” the release said.

 

As of Tuesday, Dec. 24, no new information on the whale was immediately available.

 

North Atlantic right whales are among the world’s most endangered large whales because of human activities, with an estimated 370 whales remaining, the NOAA website said. The species has been listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act since 1970.

 

Commercial whalers hunted the species to near extinction by the early 1890s, and they got their name from being the “right” whales to hunt because they floated after being killed, according to the NOAA website.

 

Fishing gear entanglement and vessel strikes are now the leading causes of death for the species, according to the website.


Entanglement can lead to drownings—as trapped animals cannot reach the surface to breathe—lacerations and infections; and starvation, according to the International Whaling Commission website.

 

North Atlantic right whales have “stocky black bodies,” no dorsal fins and V-shaped blow spouts, according to the NOAA website. Calves measure about 14 feet at birth, and adults can grow up to 52 feet long.

 

Scientists believe that right whales could live at least 70 years, but female whales are now only living to around 45 and males only to around 65 years old because of human impacts.

 

This whale off the Outer Banks is the third North Atlantic right whale that was found entangled in fishing gear within a week. The first two were sighted off the coast of Massachusetts on Monday, Dec. 9, according to a Dec. 17 NOAA Fisheries press release.

 

“Human impacts continue to threaten the survival of this species,” the Dec. 20 release said.


Mariners who see any entangled, injured or dead whales are encouraged to report them in one of three ways, the release said. If it’s safe to take photos or video from at least 500 yards away, mariners are encouraged to do so and to share those GPS coordinates with authorized responders.


The NOAA release said to contact the Southeast Marine Mammal Stranding Hotline for North Carolina to Texas at 877-WHALE-HELP (877-942-5343); the Greater Atlantic Marine Mammal Stranding Hotline for Maine to Virginia at 866-755-6622; or the U.S. Coast Guard through VHF Channel 16.


On the Outer Banks, the OBX Marine Mammal Stranding Network also takes calls, according to its website. Strandings in Currituck, Dare and Hyde counties can be reported to 252-455-9654, while incidents on the Cape Hatteras National Seashore can be reported to 252-216-6892.


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